Answer His Call, Tell His Story, Change Your World

My personality is broken. I don't mean that I'm some kind of creepy person. Neither do I mean that I have some kind of awkward mental disease. Oh, I have a disease, but it's not mental. It's spiritual. I'm a sinner. And, I'm just guessing that you are, too. I have that on good authority.

Where's this going? It's simple. I've encountered many believers over the years that cite their personality as the guide to what they will do and won't do for God in the church and in His Kingdom. It's like they've accepted their personality as some kind of spiritual boundary that we need to remind God about every now and then... especially when He asks us to function outside of our comfort zone. That's what I think the whole personality conversation is about: comfort.

Yet, I believe that sin has corrupted more than my morals and my desires. I believe that Scripture describes me as completely broken, no realms of life excluded, including my personality. God made me unique, then Satan introduced sin and spilled coffee on the description of my personality. Then, that coffee-stained personality is what I ended up with.

I don't believe my personality limits God. I don't believe He consults my personality profile. He doesn't care if I'm a lion or a beaver, an introvert or an extrovert. He's not impressed that I'm an INTJ or an ENFP, or whatever. Scripture describes God at work within me. Scripture says that He's not finished with me. The Bible proclaims that God is at work perfecting me right now. So, He's evidently not settling for what my personality looks like today.

From a human standpoint, functioning outside of my personality is draining. It's exhausting. But, its not impossible. I just need to be careful that I don't go out there on my own. Functioning beyond our comfort zone should be a God thing. We should be trusting in Him and following Him out there. It should be a journey of faith, not one of experimentation or determination. Those are human activities. We're looking for "God-activities."

Here's the bottom line. If God calls you to cross a line that takes you outside your comfort zone, say, "Yes." He'll meet you there. The place to which He's calling you is still inside His comfort zone. So, you can trust him out there. Here's the big question, though: Do you trust Him? If you don't, you just might have found a place in your personality that's broken!

﻿C﻿﻿rossi﻿﻿ng the Lines﻿

﻿﻿﻿The ideas behind this blog emerged from my study and preaching of a message I titled ﻿"A Single Step."﻿ It was an unexpected message out of Philippians 2:12-18. I'm the one who was surprised. I had a whole different idea of where the sermon would go. Then, I got into the text and followed it. That led, eventually, to the response by individuals after the message. God worked in me and in our congregation. He's still at work.

﻿This blog strives to motivate and encourage our members to keep on going and to tell their stories. Crossing the Lines in our lives will change us and our world.﻿﻿﻿